Field
The present disclosure relates to an image forming apparatus and a sheet accommodation unit, which includes an accommodation portion that temporarily accommodates a sheet on which an image has been formed.
Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, there are image forming apparatuses, such as copiers and printers, which are provided with accommodation portions that temporarily accommodate sheets inside a main body of the apparatus so that a user can take out only his/her own sheets on which images have been formed.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2014-114164 describes an image forming apparatus provided with, other than a typical discharge tray that is provided on an upper surface of a main body of the apparatus and that a plurality of users share and use, a plurality of accommodation portions that temporarily accommodate sheets, on which images have been formed, inside a main body of the apparatus. In order to take out the sheets accommodated in the accommodation portion, user authentication is performed with an ID card, for example. The user authentication is performed by having an ID card of the user be read by an ID card reader provided in the apparatus. When the user is authenticated, the sheets of the user who commanded the sheets to be taken out are exposed external to the main body of the apparatus. With the above, the user can take out only his/her own sheets on which images have been formed and does not have to go through the trouble of finding his/her own sheets from a discharge tray on which own sheets and sheets of other users are mixed.
In the image forming apparatus of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2014-114164, when the user is authenticated, the sheets accommodated in the accommodation portion are moved and the sheets are stopped when portions of the sheets are exposed external to the main body of the apparatus from an opening portion. With the above, the user is capable of removing the user's own sheets. However, there are cases in which the above method of removing sheets does not match the needs of the user.
A configuration, such as the configuration of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2014-114164, in which the accommodation portion is provided inside the main body of the apparatus has an upper limit in the number of sheets that can be accommodated in the accommodation portion. Furthermore, user authentication with an ID card is needed when taking out sheets that are accommodated in the accommodation portion, and the sheets cannot be taken out by a user other than the user that had commanded the printing of the sheets. Accordingly, when all of the accommodation portions are accommodated with sheets, a state in which other users cannot use the accommodation portion continues while the user forgets to take out the sheets from the accommodation portion.